Container Water Gardens

Add the beauty of a water garden to your landscape in less than 30 minutes. Use a container to create a miniature water garden for your patio, deck balcony or garden.

Begin by selecting a water tight container that fits the decor of your landscape and is easy to handle. A pot 12-18 inches deep and 12 to 24 inches wide will work just fine.

Create an attractive display by using a variety of plants. Many garden centers now carry aquatic plants ready to submerge in your garden.

Use bricks or overturned terra cotta pots on the bottom of the container to elevate the pots to the desired height. Set plants in place and fill with water.

And don't worry about the mosquitoes. Add a small solar powered pump to keep the water moving and eliminate the problem. Or add bacillus thuringienis the israliensis strain to kill any larvae that find their way into your mini water garden.

A bit more information: Design your container water garden just as you would any other container garden in your landscape. Use spiky plants like reeds, sweet flag (Acorus) or yellow flag iris. Add some bold texture with broad-leaf plants such as elephant ears, canna, giant arrowhead or calla lilies. Mix in some smaller plants like bloody dock and a few trailers like golden moneywort (Lysimachia), water mint and parrot feather (Myriophyllum aquaticum).